Memories of the first day of school and the last day linger well after we reach adulthood. Both days are exciting and mark important milestones for every student. Parents and teachers understand the tremendous positive changes and sense of belonging that occur for students between those two days. 

So, what memories will be associated with the 2020-2021 school year, which began with remote learning for all students and ended with a blend of remote and hybrid? Will this be a year that was ruined by the challenges of COVID-19, or one in which students and their families adapted and persevered despite a global pandemic?

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson said something once that seems appropriate as we think of the struggles that students, families and staff faced this year: “Every setback has a major comeback.”

During a recent School Board meeting, we reviewed a report about the school district’s response to the pandemic. It was both sobering and exhilarating to look back at the route we constructed to help Tahoma navigate the most disruptive global event of our lives. Here are a few things that stood out:

None of these things were accomplished without the dedication, creativity, commitment and energy of our staff. To those who gave up weekends, vacations and evenings in service to our students, I can only offer my most sincere gratitude and admiration for your selfless service. Your work made a difference in the lives of our students.

To our students and families, I have an appreciation of what we describe as authentic partnership with you. Despite the hardships created by COVID-19, we witnessed the resilience and dedication of our students and the support provided to them by their families. It has never been more clear that as individuals, if we care deeply enough, we can impact our learning community in positive ways. Consider the Drive-Through Halloween Ship event that student Cooper Perez, community member Eric Knudsen and family, and the Middle Schools of Tahoma PTA created together. In a very short timeframe, they planned, executed and hosted an event that brought in 3.2 tons of food for the Maple Valley Food Bank. It brought a much needed sense of normalcy and hope when our community yearned for it.

Our education efforts could not have succeeded without your engagement and cooperation. We also know there were struggles, and that some students faced steeper challenges than others. We will do everything we can to help those students get what they need as they return to school next fall.

Looking ahead to the next school year feels immensely better than it did a year ago. We can’t wait for our students to be back in school full time next year. The benefits of being together in person are well known and we are eager to begin. There are still challenges to overcome and I am confident that we will be successful. Our comeback, as Russell Wilson might say, is well underway.

Please have an enjoyable summer. Thank you for helping us be better together.

Mike Hanson

Superintendent

Tahoma High School's 95th commencement ceremony was celebrated on June 11 on the high school campus. The ceremony was conducted in three, two-hour sessions to reduce crowding and maintain COVID-19 safety protocols. Seniors arrived at the east entrance, where they were greeted by Principal Terry Duty and other staff. They took a last "Memory Walk" through the building and exited on the west end of the building. They continued walking past the athletic fields and arrived at the football/track stadium, where they received their diploma on stage as family and friends looked on. Best wishes, Class of '21 Bears!

For a collection of photos, click here.

To watch the graduation presentation, including musical performances and speeches, click here.

Two Tahoma parents are collaborating to help create committees within each Tahoma school’s parent-teacher organization specifically designed to help advocate for students who receive Special Services and students with disabilities. Shadow Lake Elementary parent Tatum Fettig and Kim Selis, who has students at Glacier Park Elementary and Summit Trail Middle School, say they also hope to help students and families manage transitions; share information about school criteria and resources available; and create partnerships with community support services and programs.

Selis is a former teacher, and the parent of two boys who have autism. Fettig is a former school counselor and a parent of two children, one of whom is a brain cancer survivor.

Last week, the two attended a virtual meeting of the Tahoma PTA/PTO Roundtable, which includes representatives from all Tahoma parent-teacher organizations, and talked about what they’re hoping to accomplish. “We don’t consider ourselves experts,” Fettig said. “Our why -- really, this has to do with being included.”

Many of the surrounding school districts already have established Special Education PTA groups.

“There’s something about having kids with disabilities that can be kind of isolating,” Selis said. This effort will work to build connections among families at each school and districtwide, encourage parent involvement, provide education for families and share opportunities for advocacy.

“This is such a perfect example of parent advocacy,” said Laura Meyers, co-president of the round table group.

They also hope that when PTA and PTO groups are planning their programs and events for the year, that the Special Education/Disabilities Committee members could help make those programs and events inclusive for all students. As a starting point, Selis and Fettig are seeking interested families who would like to help at each school building. They quickly created a website for more information, and can also be reached by email at tsdspeceddisabilitiespta@gmail.com.

“We believe that their efforts will be very supportive of both the PTA/PTOs and students and families in helping to broaden inclusion and access to PTA-sponsored events,” said Annette Whittlesey, director of Special Services

Last Friday, several classes of Lake Wilderness Elementary students gathered -- socially distanced and masked -- outside, holding colorful signs and pompoms, and waited. Staff members from a few other buildings, board members and several other guests trickled out to join the students. The few moments of waiting seemed to make the students more excited. Suddenly, someone said “She’s coming!”

Principal Melanie Ready walked outside, surprised by Lake Wilderness students, staff members, family and learning community, who had gathered to congratulate her on winning the Danforth Art in Leadership Award from the University of Washington. Ann O’Doherty, the director of the Danforth Educational Leadership Program, presented Ready with the award

A few weeks ago, O’Doherty called Ready to let her know that she had been nominated for the award by LWES Dean of Students Amanda Blashaw. “I was just so honored and brought to tears by the recognition. I immediately thought of our amazing Lake Wilderness staff and how being a part of a great team makes leadership successful,” Ready said.

As part of the process, she also had the chance to speak at the UW Danforth administrative certificate graduation and share a little bit about her leadership journey. “I couldn’t be more proud that this journey brought me to Lake Wilderness -- where our community truly is family! I was once again brought to tears when staff, students and guests surprised me last week with this award presentation,” she said. “My heart is so full to think so much work went into this recognition ceremony. I am so honored to be a part of the great work in Tahoma and at Lake Wilderness Elementary School.”

One of the primary reasons that Blashaw nominated Ready for the award is her commitment to her core values, which she shares in a way that helps “build a vision with intentionality and love,” Blashaw said. “Her ability to lead with daily joy and authenticity, and her unwavering commitment to equity and student-centered instruction makes her an incredible leader at bringing people together and inspiring growth and community. I feel incredibly grateful to lead and learn from her in a school and district with her as a principal.”

O’Doherty shared that she first met Ready about five years ago when she was a student in the UW Danforth Educational Leadership Program. “UW Danforth teaches people – like Ms. Ready and Ms. Blashaw -- to be school principals. What I first noticed about Ms. Ready is that just like you, Ms. Ready is a learner. But not just a casual learner – she is a fierce and committed learner,” O’Doherty said. “When she was at UW, she fully participated in every class. This meant she read and critically analyzed thousands of pages of resources, and hours of films and media. During class, she listened and asked questions and shared her thinking with her classmates, applied what she was learning to her work in ways that improved her school – and brought her true self every day. She did all of these things through the lens of improving equity, learning and collaboration, and we learned as much from Ms. Ready as she learned from UW.”

The award is designed to honor an early career educator who exhibits creativity, interpretation, and a balance of both imagination and technical ability and recognizes a leader who enacts a bold vision through strong core values and perseverance— without losing sight of individual or community needs.

Many staff from Tahoma and from Kent and Mercer Island, where Ready worked previously, shared their thoughts as part of the nomination process. Lake Wilderness Head Custodian Melisa Coghill said “... Lake Wilderness is so lucky to have Melanie as our leader. The one thing that hits me the most is that when Melanie listens, she actually hears you. Not just as a principal, but as a friend. She hears what’s important to you and what your needs are. She is so supportive in all aspects of my job. She is understanding and helpful when I need guidance in any direction. Melanie treats us as a crew the way she treats any staff member. She makes us feel loved, supported and appreciated on a daily basis.”

Thanking those who attended the award ceremony, Ready said she loved seeing students and families at the recent parade, and enjoys working with her staff. “You fill my heart. Thank you, all.”

Teachers who have had the opportunity to sample the “Into Literature” middle school English Language Arts curriculum are thrilled about the resources and strategies the curriculum includes -- and, what’s more, they say that their students agree.

A team of teachers, instructional coaches and a parent volunteer shared a presentation with the School Board at its June 8 meeting, for a first reading of the proposed curriculum adoption. Second reading and proposed adoption is scheduled for the June 22 meeting.

Instructional Coach and ELA Content Specialist Matt Brashears said the process began in early 2020, when the committee was created, and continued during the pandemic despite the added complexities. The committee members reviewed StudySync, Amplify ELA and Into Literature; Amplify was later removed. The process also included an equity review of the materials by a district Equity committee, a pilot of the new curriculum, and a community input night in December. Additionally, a new group called the Instructional Materials Committee, which includes parents and community members, reviewed the district’s process.

“The process that has led to the recommendation of Into Literature has been amazingly collaborative,” Brashears said. “Middle school ELA teachers’ content expertise has been combined with parent perspectives, feedback from members of our district equity committees, vertical alignment support from elementary and high school teacher representatives, and a thorough review of the process by the newly-formed and community-driven Instructional Materials Committee. I’m excited to see students engaging with this new ELA curriculum in the Fall!”

The new curriculum will replace Springboard, which the district has used since the 2013-2014 school year.

“Our teachers have found Springboard, for middle level students, is somewhat ‘dry and boring.’” Executive Director of Teaching and Learning Dawn Wakeley wrote in a memo to the board. “Additionally, teachers have identified a lack of skill instruction in reading. While Springboard includes a significant amount of assigned reading, explicit skill instruction to become a better reader was limited.”

Two of the staff members who participated in the process, Summit Trail Middle School language arts teacher Kelly Harned, and Maple View language arts and social studies teacher Tracy Dunnam, shared their thoughts with the School Board.

Harned said that she and her students both appreciated the intentional reading instruction strategies, and that the students even mentioned they could use the strategies in their other classes. “Even verbally, the kids coming back to me were saying ‘Wow! This makes so much sense!’” Harned said. “I can’t really say enough about how excited I am …”

Dunnam emphasized that the curriculum provides needed methods to support different kinds of learners. “The curriculum is very thorough in providing scaffolds of support for all our students,” she said.

The team noted that Into Literature also:

“I’m excited that we are going to be creating much more passionate middle school readers,” Dunnam said.

The Tahoma School Board has been regularly informed and involved during assembly of the district’s 2021-2022 operating budget and will receive its final update on June 22. A public hearing is scheduled for July 20. Final adoption of the budget is scheduled for July 27.

In a budget review that was presented during the June 15 work-study meeting, Assistant Superintendent Lori Cloud presented the general fund budget, transportation vehicle budget, ASB budget, capital projects budget, and debt service budget. Copies of those budget documents are available for review in BoardDocs, on the School Board page of the Tahoma website, attached to the June 15 meeting agenda.

The general fund budget is the largest one and is the main operating budget for the school district. The budget estimates spending $148 million in 2021-2022, compared to $142 million this year. Most of the increase is for salaries and benefits, including additional teaching staff needed because of anticipated enrollment increases. Revenue is estimated to be $138 million, which will be less than expenditures. The budget will need to use $9.8 million from the district’s fund balance reserve to meet anticipated spending.

As required by state law, the budget also includes a forecast through the 2024-2025 school year. The forecast shows the district reducing its fund balance each year. The fund balance would be depleted by the 2024-2025 school year unless the district continues to receive local levy funding, which could be renewed in 2024.

Highlights for the other budgets:

Congresswoman Kim Schrier, who represents the 8th District, was the guest speaker during this week’s Presidential Volunteer Service Awards Ceremony, which was held via Zoom. “It is such an honor to meet you and to thank you for your exemplary service,” Schrier said. “You stepped up to serve at a time when more people in this country needed help than any time I can remember. 

“It’s really special that the four of you rose above everything going on in our communities right now to serve,” she continued. “Your community is stronger and better because of your service efforts. I hope you feel pride knowing that. … It leaves a mark on the world.”

Junior Daniel Park earned a Bronze Award for many hours volunteering with the King County Library Study Zone program, and for the library’s Teen Talk Time program.

Junior Aileen Park earned a Silver Award for volunteering at Multicare, as well as for Teen Talk Time. She selected Multicare because she wants to work in the medical field in the future.

Sophomore Tanveer Grewal earned a Gold Award for volunteering at Leadership Initiative’s summer program, where he worked with a group of about 30 youth volunteers against sexual and gender discrimination; and also created marketing materials for a woman-owned business in Nigeria. Additionally Grewal worked with Maple Valley youth on projects such as making food packages, rallying against hate toward Asian Americans and more.

Junior Katie Lumsden earned two awards, a Gold Award for 2020 (there was no ceremony due to the pandemic) and a Bronze Award for 2021. Lumsden has volunteered with elementary age girls at a Maple Valley day camp, hosted school supply drives and put together activity boxes to help veterans during the pandemic.

To watch a recording of the ceremony, click here.

Tahoma baseball’s league champions were honored with six first-team selections, player of the year and coach of the year by the North Puget Sound League.

Logan Pierce was chosen as player of the year, joining Coach of the Year Russ Hayden on the all-league squad. Players chosen to the first team are: Pitcher Matt Lewis; catcher Carson Ohland; first baseman James Joss; shortstop Julius Hooks; outfielder Noah Lee; and designated hitter Cody Monaghan. Outfielder Chris Wagner was chosen to the second team. Pitcher James Joss earned honorable mention.

The North Puget Sound League selected Tahoma senior shortstop Kirsten Chung as co-player of the year and Rob McMartin as coach of the year in all-league fast-pitch softball selections Friday. 

Five Tahoma players are listed on the first team: Pitcher Haley Sheffer, catcher Emma Dazell, infielder Kaiea Higa, outfielder Madison Knull and designated player Raeden Young. Two Bears were selected to the second team: infielder Brenna Henry and outfielder Maddie Rose.

Tahoma High School sophomore Ben Brady earned the opportunity to represent the National Jr. Orienteering USA team for the 21 and younger age group at the Jr World Orienteering Championships near Istanbul, Turkey in September. While in Turkey, Brady will compete in the sprint, middle, long and team relay events.

Orienteering is a sport that combines running and navigation, using a map and compass to find checkpoints as quickly as possible.

The Tahoma Orienteering Team (a club) varsity members fared well this season:

It's the last day of classes for the 2020-2021 school year, and we would like to wish you a safe, happy summer, Tahoma!

For summer office hours at the Central Services Center and school buildings, click here: https://bit.ly/TSDsummerHours2021.

June 19 is Juneteenth, the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States. It marks the day that enslaved Texans learned they were free in 1865, two months after Robert E. Lee surrendered and ended the Civil War and two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. 

Initially a uniquely Texan observance, Juneteenth has now been recognized around the country and was formally pronounced as a national holiday this week. Juneteenth is a day our Black community has traditionally celebrated and recognized, but is a day that is relatively unknown, talked about, or celebrated by others. As a school district, we would like to take a small step of hope and solidarity by recognizing and celebrating Juneteenth.  

Tahoma is hiring for a number of positions, including for several nursing positions. We are in search of skilled, caring nurses.

To view current openings or to apply, visit the Tahoma School District website under the "Employment" tab, or click here: bit.ly/TSDjobOpenings.

This summer, our Tahoma Wellness Team and the City of Maple Valley will post a Mental Health Minute each Monday starting in July. Stephanie Williams, Maple Valley Resource Coordinator and Liz Thibert, Tahoma Wellness Coordinator, will talk through topics around mental health and wellness. Videos will be 1-2 minutes and posted on this YouTube channel to watch anytime. 

If Tahoma families need mental health support during the summer, please email TSDcounseling@tahomasd.us (monitored from 9-3, M-F). Stephanie will be able to assist you. 

For needs outside of this time, please visit: https://sites.google.com/tahomasd.us/tsdcounseling/home 

If you are in crisis, please call 911 or 866-427-4747 (Crisis Line, 24 hours a day).

Starting this fall, Tahoma students in grades 6-12 will be expected to bring a computer to school with them each day. Students can bring their own personal device or borrow one from the school district. 

 

Tahoma School District is committed to ensuring that students have ready and reliable access to digital tools, information, and resources that support empowered learning; collaboration, productivity, and creativity; differentiated and personalized learning; and opportunities to develop and demonstrate the District’s Future Ready Skills. The district is also committed to being responsible stewards of the community’s tax dollars. 

Requiring students to have their own computer will help them to meet these objectives for secondary students in the most responsible and sustainable way. The past several months of school have shown that many students preferred bringing their own device to school, so school officials will continue to encourage that model, while at the same time lending Chromebooks to any students who would prefer not to bring their own device. More information will be provided throughout the summer as details are refined.

Tahoma’s Nutrition Services team will offer summer meals from Tuesday, June 29 through Thursday, July 29, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays (not on Mondays or Fridays).

Meal kits will be distributed at Tahoma High School, from 10:15-10:45 a.m. at the curb, and from 11-11:15 a.m. on campus.

In-person and remote-learning students who are currently borrowing a Chromebook and/or hotspot from the Tahoma School District are asked to return the devices to the district on or after the last day of school:

Students attending in person were asked to return their device(s) to their classroom teacher on Friday, June 18.

Students attending remotely will return their device(s) on Monday, June 21, or Tuesday, June 22, at one of four locations. All devices must be returned, even if students might use them next year.

Families can return devices to any location below on Monday or Tuesday, regardless of which school their student attends. (If you are returning a device at an elementary location but you also have loaned devices for your middle or high school students, you are welcome to return those at the locations below, as well).

Families need to return their Chromebook, charger and/or hotspot during these times. 

NOTE: Shadow Lake and Rock Creek are unable to hold drop-off events due to construction. 

Tahoma School Board has begun the process to select someone to fill a vacancy for Director District 2 on the board. Current District 2 Director Katrina Montgomery will resign her position on June 23 because her family is moving out of state this summer. Anyone who is a resident of District 2 and is a U.S. citizen and registered voter may apply for the position. 

Each applicant is asked to complete an application form. The School Board will review all applications and will interview qualified candidates during a public meeting on August 24. On Aug. 26, the School Board will select one of the applicants to serve on the board for the remainder of the term, which expires in December 2023.

The School Board is comprised of five elected Directors whose responsibility is to set policy that supports high academic achievement and Future Ready preparation for students in the Tahoma School District. The School Board is responsible for selecting and employing the Superintendent of Schools, who oversees daily operation of the School District.

 School Directors each represent a geographic area, with each Director District drawn to include about one-fifth of the people who reside in the School District. The Director Districts are adjusted following each decennial census (every 10 years). School Directors serve four-year terms and are voted on by all registered voters in the School District, regardless of Director District.

Applications will be accepted until 4:30 p.m. on July 16, 2021. To be qualified, those applying must be United States Citizens and qualified voter residents of the School District and appropriate Director District.

For more information and details about how to apply, click here. Anyone with questions may email Tamara Wheeler at twheeler@tahomasd.us or call her at 425-413-3400.

During the June 8 School Board meeting, Board Director Pete Miller congratulated the district Finance Department on receiving a clean audit result, with no adjustments.

Miller attended the closing meeting of this year’s audit process.

“We got a glowing report,” he said, noting that this makes five years in a row of clean audits for Tahoma.

To view the audit report, click here.

More classrooms are coming to Tahoma High School and Cedar River Elementary School soon. 

Cedar River is adding a modular building with six classrooms. Site work will be done this summer, including construction of a permanent foundation. The prefabricated building will be delivered and assembled in October. It should be ready for use by January 2022. The building is a permanent structure and features a main entrance, hallway, restrooms, classroom sinks, and security system.

At Tahoma High School, six classrooms will be added by installing three portable structures adjacent to the existing portable classrooms that house the Transitions education program. The portable classrooms are being purchased through the King County Directors Association, a purchasing cooperative among school districts. The portables were used for one year by the Chehalis School District and now are being installed at the high school. The cost of purchase and installation is $1.7 million.

The new classrooms will be used to accommodate current and anticipated enrollment growth.

Other projects this summer include recarpeting the entire school and installation of new kitchen equipment at Rock Creek Elementary, reroofing Shadow Lake Elementary School, and improvements to heating and ventilating systems at several sites.

The district is archiving the Reopening Website today.

The site was created in the summer of 2020 as a central location for all reopening information. The district will be open full time, five days per week in the fall, beginning Sept. 1.

The COVID-19 dashboard will be moved to our main website and maintained until guidance from health officials and the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction indicate it is no longer needed.

If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to us in the Communications Office at TSDMessages@tahomasd.us.

The King County Library System’s Summer Reading Program is underway. For details, click here: https://kcls.org/summer/.

Library staff also compiled lists of book ideas for families:

The Maple Valley 5K Bear Run will be on July 10 this year. Registration is open now at www.MapleValleyBearRun.com for the virtual or in-person run.

Organized by the Tahoma Cross Country Running Club, the event helps cover the cost of scholarships for Tahoma High School seniors, summer camps and traveling costs for runners.

Registration is free for kids ages 12 and under (other than a $2.50 handling fee before June 30). Registration for those older than 12 is $30. To read more or view the sponsors of the event, visit the website above or check out their event page on Facebook.

Our June 4, 2021, article “THS installs ‘Wall of Honor’” for alum service members, there were two errors. Brad Mjelde is a graduate of Lindbergh High School in Renton. Mjelde’s children are alums of Tahoma High School. Tahoma Assistant Superintendent Lori Cloud secured the contractor, David McBride.